THE GLORY OF THE ALMIGHTY

Winbourne Park Long Term Care Centre ~ November 18, 2007

Revelation 4:1-11 (ESV)
–After this I looked, and
behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had
heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, "Come up
here, and I will show you what must take place after this."
(2) At once I was in the Spirit, and
behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.
(3) And he who sat there had the
appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that
had the appearance of an emerald. (4)
Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were
twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their
heads. (5) From the throne came
flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and before the
throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of
God,
(6) and before the throne there was
as it were a sea of glass, like crystal. And around the throne, on each side
of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind:
(7) the first living creature like a
lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with
the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight.
(8) And the four living creatures,
each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day
and night they never cease to say, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God
Almighty, who was and is and is to come!"
(9) And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and
thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever,
(10) the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated
on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their
crowns before the throne, saying, (11)
"Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for
you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created."

When I was a child I asked my parents what
Heaven would be like. I was worried because I spent a lot of time in church
and I didn’t want it to be like church (I thought an adult service was
already an eternity because there was nothing that interested me once the
singing was over) but I couldn’t think of what else it might be like. I
certainly didn’t want to sit around on a cloud playing a harp all day, I
couldn’t even play the recorder. I will come to the answer they gave me
further along into this message.

Later in life, while at Bible college, I
studied under a professor who taught that heaven would be very much like
this world is now but perfect the way God had intended our home to be from
the beginning. This sounded far more appealing than sitting in a choir for
eternity; at least we would be doing something and it renewed my interest in
my childhood question to the point where I began to explore what the Bible
actually said about Heaven.

The Bible doesn’t give as many specifics
about Heaven as it does on other topics. What it does say is that Heaven
will be perfect as this world could never hope to be. My parents gave me a
very similar answer:

Can you imagine what it’s like to spend all
your time with your best friend? Do you get tired of being with him? How
about the best time you’ve ever had, did you want it to ever end? Do you
think you could ever get tired of things as good as these? Well Heaven is
going to be better. God is a better friend than your best friend could ever
be because He gave His Son for you when you were His enemy and gave you a
place in His family. The celebration in Heaven is infinitely more enjoyable
than the best party you’ve ever had on Earth because it’s celebrating the
right things. Heaven may last forever but it will never be boring because
you’re going to be alive the way God always wanted you to be.

They didn’t give me a lot of detail but they
told me what I needed to know. Heaven will be wonderful because there will
finally be nothing between God and ourselves. The temptations, sins, aches
and pains that distract us from Him today will be gone, forever, beyond even
the point of recollection. There will be nothing between us and God,
absolutely nothing, and we will finally be able to worship Him as we have
longed to all of our lives. The big thing about Heaven they said, was that
we would be with God

We can gain a good idea of what God is like
by looking at what He has made. When we look at the stars, or a mountain, or
the multitude of animals we share this planet with the very least we can
learn is that God is not boring. We have learned a great deal about His
nature from creation and can see that He is awesome. Speaking of those who
deny God Paul wrote that the character of God, His holiness and power, are
clearly seen in everything He has made:

Romans 1:19-20 (ESV)
– For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has
shown it to them.
(20) For his invisible attributes,
namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived,
ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So
they are without excuse.

Almost every civilization throughout history has had some concept of a
creator, to varying degrees of grandeur. The underlying belief of each was
that the beauty that can be seen around us could not have come into being of
its own accord, it is simply too majestic; so full of the glory of God that
there can be no response but to fall to one’s knees in worship of the God
who’s character is revealed in all that exists. King David of Israel said it
this way, being moved to worship and reverent obedience by the glory of God
revealed in creation:

Psalm 19:1-14
–The heavens declare the
glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
(2) Day to day pours out speech, and
night to night reveals knowledge. (3)
There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.
(4) Their voice goes out through all
the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a
tent for the sun, (5) which
comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man,
runs its course with joy. (6)
Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of
them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
(7) The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the
testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple;
(8) the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes;
(9) the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the rules
of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether.
(10) More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine
gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.
(11) Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them
there is great reward. (12) Who
can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
(13) Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let
them not have dominion over me! Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of
great transgression. (14) Let
the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your
sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

This is the God that we are going to spend eternity with, the same God who
created all that stands around us. Men have been studying creation and
learning its “secrets” for thousands of years and every day we discover
something even more amazing than what was discovered the day before. Our God
is not a God of boredom but a God of glory. His glory is resplendent in what
He has made and it will be even more so in the new Heaven and Earth, where
sin and corruption will no longer distract us from our Creator.

A few moments ago we read from Revelation, I would like to read that passage
again:

Revelation 4:1-11 (ESV)
–After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the
first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said,
"Come up here, and I will show you what must take
place after this." (2)
At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one
seated on the throne. (3) And
he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the
throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald.
(4) Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on
the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden
crowns on their heads. (5) From
the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder,
and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the
seven spirits of God,
(6) and before the throne there was
as it were a sea of glass, like crystal. And around the throne, on each side
of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind:
(7) the first living creature like a
lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with
the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight.
(8) And the four living creatures,
each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day
and night they never cease to say, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God
Almighty, who was and is and is to come!"
(9) And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and
thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever,
(10) the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated
on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their
crowns before the throne, saying, (11)
"Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for
you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created."

We often look into the book of Revelation in the hope of getting a glimpse
of what will happen before Jesus’ return and that is primarily why it was
written. But Revelation shows us so much more than the end of creation and
the beginning of eternity, it also shows us the glory, power and holiness of
God. Here we see the scene around the throne of God and we see living
beings, who themselves are glorious, and the elders of the Jewish people and
of the Christian Church, who themselves are honoured, and they can do no
more when confronted by the glory of God than fall before Him in worship and
return to Him the authority He has given them. A short time later John shows
Jesus receiving the same adoration:

Revelation 5:6-14
–And between the throne and
the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as
though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are
the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.
(7) And he went and took the scroll
from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne.
(8) And when he had taken the scroll,
the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the
Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the
prayers of the saints. (9) And
they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open
its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God
from every tribe and language and people and nation,
(10) and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God,
and they shall reign on the earth." (11)
Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and
the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and
thousands of thousands, (12)
saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive
power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!"
(13) And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and
under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, "To him who
sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might
forever and ever!"
(14) And the four living creatures
said, "Amen!" and the elders fell down and worshiped.

Here Jesus is revealed to those gathered around the throne of God and He is
so beautiful and the work He accomplished is so spectacular that the
inhabitants of Heaven, Earth and all of creation can do no more than fall
before Him in worship and adoration. His loveliness surpasses that of our
dearest love. His importance is far beyond the greatest leaders man has ever
served. His power belittles our mightiest tools. His righteousness is such
that it could redeem a fallen race. His glory is insurmountable; there is no
one who can compare to Jesus, none beside God and the Holy Spirit who are so
worthy of man’s praise. Regardless of our opinion of Him John tells us that
at the end of time we will worship Him in spite of ourselves, recognizing
Him for who He is and giving Him the glory that sin so long has tarnished or
tried to remove.

When we arrive in heaven, whether we sit on clouds playing harps or live on
a re-created Earth, we will do all to the glory of God, to the praise of His
Son and in the power of the Spirit of God. In my childhood I feared that it
might be boring but when seen in comparison to our tireless enjoyment of
Earth’s delights we can see that Heaven will not be boring but the most
exciting thing we will ever have been involved in. We will be praising He
who created us for worship. We will be living up to our potential. We will
be living in the presence of God without fear.